Saving London

By Taylor Dawn

The List. That Signified Finality. The Journey. That Would Span The Globe. The Sacrifice. That Would Decide The Outcome. The Choice. That Could Unleash Evil On Earth. The End Is Only The Beginning... "You have terminal cancer." London Patterson, a seemingly healthy young woman, had her entire life ahead of her. That was until four little words brought everything to a screeching halt. As the shock and grief begin to fade, London decides to map out her last year and embark on an epic journey to complete a bucket list. She wants to do the things she's been afraid to do in her life, step out of her self-contained box, and see the world. What she didn't expect was for a mysterious stranger named Adam to breeze into her life like a breath of fresh air. Adam offers to help London complete her list on one condition…that she sees it through to the end. Agreeing on those terms, the two set out on an adventure of a lifetime. But London soon realizes that Adam isn't quite…human. Along their journey odd occurrences happen that cause London to question who or what Adam is and why he's helping her. Follow London as she checks off her bucket list in this inspiring new Urban Fantasy novel from Taylor Dawn.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Princess Press
• Release date: Aug 29, 2016
• ISBN: 9781536552096

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SAVING LONDON

TAYLOR DAWN

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Princess Press

Wolf Lake, IL 2016

Copyright 2015 Taylor Dawn

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.

Attribution — You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work).

Noncommercial — You may not use this work for commercial purposes.

No Derivative Works — You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work.

Inquiries about additional permissions

should be directed to: [e-mail]

Cover Design by Scott Deyett

Edited by Wendy Garfinkle

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to similarly named places or to persons living or deceased is unintentional.

PRINT ISBN 978-1533087430

Table of Contents

COVER

TITLE PAGE

COPYRIGHT

DEDICATION

QUOTE

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

EPILOGUE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

SAVING LONDON PLAYLIST

Saving London is dedicated to my niece Haleigh. I remember you asking "Will you write a book that I can read?" Well, I hope you love your book. From the first word this was meant for you. Never let anyone dull your sparkle, keep shining no matter what.

Love Always

There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.

Buddha

PROLOGUE

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I’D COME TO BELIEVE that we are privy to an overabundance of petrifying sounds in our lives. Noises that breeze through our ears enter our brain and cause chills to run down our spine. We attempt to shake off the feelings that these sounds illicit, but the sheer terror of them do nothing but brand our skin with gooseflesh and nervousness. I thought I’d heard most of them already. That I’d taken in the echoes that strike fear through most individuals. However, I was mistaken. I undoubtedly found myself absorbing the most chilling of them all. It was unexpected and I still have trouble convincing myself that what’d happened was tangible. No, it wasn’t the shrill scream of someone in grave danger. Or the fictitious screech of a science fiction creature with hefty teeth and an appetite for human flesh and blood. The one thing that I heard was something that stopped me dead in my tracks. It put my life at a stand-still, in only a fraction of a second. I developed tunnel vision when I grasped onto the spine-chilling noise, my entire body seized up as if I’d been taken over by another life form. The ability to control what I was thinking was gone, out the window it flew like a winged creature that’d been set free. What was it? It was the sound of fear in my own voice. There was an unstable quake when I’d open my lips to speak and nothing came out. The Words I’d tried to construct wouldn’t form themselves and I felt as if I’d lost the capacity to communicate. I’d never had a reason to be afraid of it…until now.

"That can’t be right. Maybe you need to check it again." The wavering of my speech told me I was somewhere between disbelief and denial. Neither of which was welcome near me.

We went over the results with a fine tooth comb, Miss. Patterson. Science doesn’t lie in this case. The expression on the doctor’s face was dripping with subtle bleakness.

"Well, there must be some other explanation. Maybe you mixed the results up somewhere along the line." I felt a tinge of hope color my weak words.

Listen, I know this is hard. But I assure you, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the tests. The salt and pepper haired man sat down behind his desk.

Okay, fine. I’m assuming there’s some sort of treatment I should start soon?

I didn’t much care for the grim look that fell over his face like a mask of doom. I wish I could say yes. But unfortunately there isn’t anything we can do. The surgery is too risky. You could undergo Chemotherapy and Radiation treatment, but if I’m being honest, I don’t feel as though either would do much good.

"So I don’t have any options. This is just…it?"

He slowly nodded. At best, in a case such as this, I would say you have a year.

"A year to do what exactly? Sit in my house and rot?" I felt my anger bubbling to the surface like an over baked pan of lasagna.

"I understand your indignation, I really do. I think maybe if there’re some things you’ve wanted to do, it’s time to start doing them."

How could such few words have a blatant finality to them? How could I come down with a common cold and then find out my life had been reduced to a handful of months?

I can prescribe some medication to get you through the general symptoms, but above that… He trailed off. He was being somewhat compassionate I suppose. I wouldn’t want to tell someone they were dying either, what a crap job.

I’d thought medical professionals were supposed to heal you? They would diagnose the issue and bam you were handed a bottle of antibiotics and better within a week. But unless he had a freaking miracle stashed beneath that prescription pad, I was toast.

If you’d like someone to talk to, I can recommend someone. He began to extend some sort of business card across the desk toward me.

I abruptly raised myself from the chair that felt as if it were squeezing the life from me. "Thanks, but no thanks. I’d rather not waste the time I have left lying on a sofa and spilling my problems to a stranger."

It was difficult holding my anger at bay. Counting to ten while I exited the medical facility helped but the urge to hit something was a fierce impulse to fight off. Did I cry? For some reason, I didn’t at that moment. I can’t say why either. I wanted to, but the tears wouldn’t come. They stayed hidden in their little duct homes while I walked around seeing red.

Cancer of the Liver is what they called it. Yeah, he’d given me some mumbo jumbo scientific name for it, but all I heard was the ‘C’ word. The word that no one wants to hear in their lives. The word that rips hope away from the person being diagnosed, and replaces it with desperation and depression. With a disease like that, you’d think I was a raging alcoholic who did nothing but fill her days by holding down a bar stool while finding the bottom of a bottle. But I wasn’t. I didn’t touch the stuff. So how was it I became strapped with a terminal disease such as that? Why was this happening to me of all people?

I know life isn’t some kind of tranquil state that we float through without a care in the world. I would be utterly stupefied if I honestly believed that. No, life is a series of unfortunate circumstances that lead us to make decisions we don’t really want to make. What to have for breakfast, what to wear, and even what to say to the person occupying the seat next to us on the city bus. We don’t really put much thought into it all, but what are we really doing here? Why were we put on this planet for only a miniscule amount of time? Is there some grand plan that we aren’t seeing, like a big picture that has our entire life mapped out already?

Up until the dreaded news, I’d thought life was something to take for granted. That I could wake up every day and be guaranteed tomorrow. It’s hard to believe that everything can be changed in the course of a few ounces of blood and a doctor’s visit. I continued to shake my head wondering what really happened, was I dreaming of all of this? I wish I was. Things would be easier that way. But such as life, nothing is easy. We’re screwed no matter which way we go, and end up paying the consequences for it every day of our lives.

I made a decision. I wasn’t going to sit around and watch myself waste away like a banana rotting slowly on a counter. Nope, I was going to live my life like I just didn’t give a crap anymore…well, not in a negative way. I was going to throw caution to the wind, balls to the wall, take no prisoners and do the things I’ve always wanted to do. You could call it my bucket list, or my death list, whatever you feel comfortable with is alright by me.

My life is timed; I have an expiration date stamped on my rear like a yogurt container in the dairy section. After my time is up, that’s it. I don’t get a free pass. I’m okay with it now. I have to be. If I weren’t, I’d be that banana…I am not a banana.

But in the end I’ll get to laugh and smile at the things I’ve accomplished with my time on this earth. I can’t wish my fate away; I can’t find a genie in a bottle on a desolate stretch of beach to grant me more time. I’m accepting it like you’d accept a second place trophy in a one-legged man’s butt kicking contest.

At least I was given a year. To some it might seem like a small amount of time, and truly it is. But when you’re given only that long to live, it can in a way, seem like an eternity. I’ll do the things I’ve wanted to do because in the end…no one can save London Patterson.

CHAPTER ONE

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December 31st

I WISH YOU’D STOP peeking over my shoulder like that. You’re starting to creep me out. I scolded my best friend Lilly.

I’m curious as to what you’re writing.

Have you seen that movie with Morgan Freeman and that other old guy?

Pulp Fiction?

No, that was Samuel L. Jackson, but good try. I laugh at my best friend and current co-worker. Sometimes I didn’t think she has the sense God gave a horse.

Oh, oh yeah you’re right! Pulp Fiction was the one where he was like ‘say what again mother blanker!’ She clapped her hands like she’d discovered the meaning to life. I kind of wish she had, it would’ve made my remaining life much easier.

The Bucket List, I stated plainly.

Ugh, don’t you think that’s a bit morbid? You know, in your current state? she asked sheepishly.

Lilly, I’m dying. How much more morbid can it get than that?

I don’t know. But there’s plenty of positive things you could be doing right now, London.

Please enlighten me then? What does the all mighty Lilly think a dying girl could be doing at this very moment?

Well, it does happen to be New Year’s Eve you know. We could go celebrate.

Forgive me if I’d rather spend my last year on this earth doing meaningful things and not boozing it up with the in-crowd. I flashed air quotes to accentuate my point.

Look, you don’t have to be so Debbie Downer about this. I was trying to cheer you up.

And I appreciate your valiant efforts, but I’ll pass. I have a year left and tonight I’ll make my list on how I spend that year.

Okay, but do me one favor? Lilly beseeched with her soft brown eyes.

Name it. I put my pen down to give her my full attention.

Don’t give up. There has to be something they can do.

And while they’re figuring that something out, I’ll be skydiving, swimming with sharks, and eating nasty food in Bali.

I hate this. I could see her eyes become glassy and knew the tears would start flowing any second.

"I’m not in love with the idea of all this, but these are the cards I’ve been dealt. I will go out with a bang." I laughed it all off. It wasn’t funny really, but in a situation such as the one I was in, I had to find humor or I’d turn into that banana.

I’d found out a month prior that my approximate expiration date had been stamped. Shocked would’ve been a gross understatement of the emotions I felt that day. But after the astonishment and displeasure wore off—a week later, I finally realized that it was time for me to seize the moment. Carpe Diem and all that jazz. I’d been living too safe. I stayed inside of my carefully constructed box and didn’t venture out unless I needed to work or get the mail. Luckily the mail was delivered through a slot in my front door, but that’s beside the point. If I only had ‘X’ amount of days, I wanted to make them count.

The first thing I did was pretty dumb actually; I sold my house that I’d worked so hard to buy. But I wouldn’t need it anyway. I had to fund my adventures somehow and that was the quickest way. Since the housing market was finally on the up and up, I had a buyer in no time—a super sweet newlywed couple. That left me with a car, my furniture, and a bunch of other items that I wouldn’t need in a year. It wasn’t like I could take it all with me so it was time to say goodbye. Lilly was kind enough to let me crash at her place until the New Year and in return I signed the title of my car over to her. It was a fair trade in my opinion…hers too since she didn’t have a car at the time.

The rest of my stuff I donated to a women’s shelter in the area and they were extremely grateful for my gifts. I didn’t have any family to leave it to and Lilly’s apartment was stacked full of furnishings and random crap already. At least someone would get use out of it all. That’s really all I’d hoped for. At twenty-three I’d accumulated enough junk to be able to hold a yard sale every week for the next six months. But I didn’t have the time for that. So it was off to the people who needed it more than me. It made me feel good to help someone else in need.

Now that the coffee shop I worked at was closing for the evening, I was headed to hang out by myself at Lilly’s place. I guess I wasn’t entirely alone though, I had the list I’d been working on and Lilly’s cat. Although "catawouldn’t accurately describe the thing. More like Satan incarnate". That beast had it out for me something awful. You accidentally slam the door on something’s tail one time and it holds a grudge. Jeesh, you’d think it could sense I was rotting away and maybe forgive me just to be nice. Then again, their brains are the size of a walnut; maybe my expectations were set too high for something so inferior.

I walked the few blocks to the apartment and looked all around me. Maybe it was the fact that my days were numbered, but I had a new respect for things in general now. I could almost hear the leaves whispering on the tree limbs as the breeze sifted through them. I could feel the far away rumble of a car traveling down the street. And I could almost smell the dogs taking a poo in the patch of green grass next to the fire hydrant. Scratch that, I could smell it. I gagged a bit even. Not all things needed to be appreciated. Some were better left in a category of their own, dog poo included. There was beauty all around me, even if some of it wasn’t completely cherished.

 I climbed the concrete stairs to the second floor of the apartment building, ending up on the landing in front of apartment 3B. I thought about it for a few moments and realized that the next day was the start of an adventure for me and it couldn’t come soon enough. Lilly’s couch was starting to put a crick in my neck and give me a sore back. Not to mention the amount of cat fur covering me in the mornings could’ve made PETA think I was wearing a fur coat. I stepped closer to the door and slid my key into the lock. The teeth of the metal grating on the internal mechanism made it sound like a symphony of despair. Once the door was properly unlocked, I pushed it open and sure enough, Satan cat lunged forward, knocking me back a few feet. My rear hit the railing on the landing outside and I screeched while throwing my arms in the air. The cat darted back inside and took shelter under the sofa. Good thing, I had a mind to strangle it after that little terror session. I stood there breathing hard while grasping the railing behind me. Once I composed myself, I couldn’t help the hysterical laughter that rose from my chest and blurted into the night air.

You have a nice laugh. I jumped at the sound of a husky voice somewhere on the steps below me. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you.

Well, you did. And I don’t scare easily. I worked to catch my breath from my laughing spell.

One point for me then. He chuckled.

You’re a funny guy aren’t you? Let me guess, an aspiring comedian? I tried to sound condescending so this jerk would go away.

Something like that. Actually I’m kind of lost. He climbed another couple of steps. The outdoor light above me shone on his face, illuminating the most spectacular set of emerald eyes I’d ever seen.

Aren’t we all?

"In a way I suppose. But my kind of lost is in a literal sense. I’m trying to find Nola Avenue. You wouldn’t happen to know where it is would you?"

Do I look like a GPS? I figured I’d throw some teasing back his way.

Maybe a little, you sound pompous like one. ‘Turn left, turn left.’ He pinched the bridge of his nose while he demonstrated, making him sound extremely nasally.

Very funny. Yes, I know where it is. Take Main street about five blocks down, then make a right on Turner, go about a half a mile down and Nola will be on the left. You can’t miss it, there’s an obnoxious looking office building right on the corner.

Obnoxious office building, check. He started typing something into his smart phone.

I only say that because it used to be a playground. I guess the big wig needed to show his manhood by erecting a giant steel and glass wiener.

I’d hardly call it a wiener. He looked serious.

"Well, it’s not really a wiener…wait have you seen it already?"

Just in pictures.

Okay. Good luck then. I turned back toward the door.

What’s your name? he asked out of the blue.

London. I don’t know why I would tell my name to a complete stranger. Maybe I was asking for a death wish. Wait, I pretty much had one of those already. But there was something serene about this man. He didn’t seem at all threatening.

Nice to meet you, London. I’m Adam.

Do you have a last name, Adam?

Just Adam.

"Nice to meet you ‘just Adam’. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get in there and try not to get devoured by the feline."

Sounds fun. Have a great night, London. He smiled in my direction. There wasn’t any sort of attraction to this guy, but he was easy on the eyes. He was just…nice. Oddly though, when he stood there on the steps, I felt a sense of calm wash over me that I hadn’t really felt, like, ever. How could being in the presence of someone make you feel like that? Whatever. I had to hop to it if I wanted to get this silly list finished. Time was wasting and I didn’t have any extra seconds to waste.

CHAPTER TWO

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January

WAKING UP EACH MORNING had a new meaning now. I wasn’t sure of the exact meaning, but I knew there was one there hiding in the shadows. New Year’s Day just happened to fall on a Monday, the worst day of the week for most people. The day when you had to drag your weekend-weary body from the warm confines of your bed and face the world for another five days. Besides being the beginning of a new week for me, it was the start of my new endeavors. January first was the day I would begin my quest of awesomeness—as I like to call it.

I slung my legs over the side of the sofa and stood, stretching my arms above my head and putting some movement into my muscles. Once I felt like I was prepared, I grabbed my list and carried it to the kitchen with me. The apartment was silent—save for the demon cat lurking somewhere out of sight. In order to complete the first task, I would need some encouragement. I sat the coffee maker to brew and stared at my list while the liquid percolated behind me. There were twenty-two things looking back at me from that piece of paper, each one having their own special meaning…

London’s Bucket List

Disturb the peace

Visit Stonehenge

Get a meaningless tattoo

Crash a wedding

Climb a mountain

Sing karaoke

Visit a truly beautiful place on this earth

Steal something

Ride a horse

Make a new friend

Play dress up

Camp in a tent

Dance in the rain

Learn how to cook

Conquer a fear

Visit the Sistine Chapel

Fly a plane

Drive a race car

See the Mona Lisa

Visit London, England

Go Trick or Treating

Believe in something you never thought possible

That was my list. I knew some of the items on there were completely mind-boggling but they were there for a reason. They were things I really wanted to do. Things that would push me beyond my limits and give me memories for the time I had left. Most of them were completely out of character for a person like me. A person who refused to jay walk, made sure the right and left earbuds on my iPod were in the correct ears, and read the instructions before assembling anything from IKEA. Stealing, for example, was something I wouldn’t do in a million years; it was a crime. Punishable by jail time. But I figured if I got caught now, they would take pity on me and let me go when I told them my sob story about kicking the bucket in a year. At least I was hopeful that they would. I didn’t necessarily have to do everything in order either. Just whatever came into play at the time would be the item I would check off the list.

I’d gone over everything several times before falling asleep the night before, and couldn’t be any more satisfied with my list. I was proud in a way—this was a huge undertaking—I was right to feel pride when I looked at the words on that paper.

After my shower and coffee I shoved the list into my back pocket and left the apartment. I knew just the place to check off one of the first things…disturb the peace. It’d aggravated me to no end when they constructed that building and wiped out the playground downtown, so I was headed there to begin a bit of a protest. Too many times I’d seen big business come through and take away from the local community in my mid-sized home town.

Tewksbury, Massachusetts was home to me. I moved there when I was eighteen, and didn’t want to leave. With around thirty thousand residents it was just big enough. Located about twenty miles from Boston, it was a short trip if anyone wanted to visit the city or take in a Red Sox game during the summer months. Companies were always trying to come into our town and construct buildings that didn’t go with the quaint feel of everything else. It was high time someone stood up for the little people. Since I had nothing to lose at that point, I was the one to do it.

I walked the entire way there and as I passed the local businesses, felt even better about my one-woman protest. I knew there was a huge chance of humiliation but that didn’t stop my feet from moving on toward my destination. When I rounded the corner of the massive structure I noticed a security guard posted beside the front door. He stood tall and proud holding his post right there at the entrance of the beast. But today, he didn’t intimidate me. I walked a few feet from the massive glass doors and started my protest with confidence.

Big business sucks! Go back to where you came from! I chanted over and over again while pumping my fists in the air. I could see that he was becoming irritated, but kept on with my solo efforts. Nobody wants you here! I was feeling rather liberated and ready to take on the world at that point.

Um, excuse me, Miss. I’d turned toward the street for just a second— to wave at a honking car and when I turned back toward the building, Mr. Security was standing just a few feet away.

Can I help you? I asked smartly.

Yes, you can. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.

What if I say no? I planted my hands on my hips in defiance.

Then I’ll be forced to call the police.

Go ahead. I have rights. Have you heard of freedom of speech?

I sure have. But you’re on private property.

I’m on a sidewalk, which if I recall, is public domain. So you, my friend, can suck it. I stuck out my tongue.

Look lady, I’m not sure what you’re trying to prove here, but save us both the headache and move it along. He looked like he was almost pleading with me.

Hey Mike, what’s the problem out here? I heard a voice from behind us say.

This young lady is conducting a protest.

The other man laughed. Oh really?

Yes, I am. I spun around to face the new guy and was shocked at who was standing there. You?

London, right? He smiled.

Ugh, let me guess, you work here? Standing in front of me was the same guy who’d asked me for directions last night. Adam.

No, I’m only visiting a friend. He shoved his hands in his pockets.

Should I call the police? The guard asked.

No, I can handle it, thank you.

How is it that I keep running into you? I was confused.

Maybe it’s your destiny. 

Then you must be my Jedi master. Hurry up and teach me that freaky mind trick thing. It might come in handy. 

Unfortunately, I don’t know that one. He shrugged.

Then you need to return to Yoda for more training. I laughed. 

Would you like to go for a coffee? he offered.

No thanks. I’m not into having beverages with strangers. I smiled politely.

I’m hardly a stranger. You met me last night, remember?

Of course I remember. Do I look like an idiot? He grinned. Ugh, don’t answer that. I should know better than to set myself up like that.

Are you sure about the coffee?

Positive.

Okay then. I must be going. Have a great day, London.

Yeah, you too.

Small world it was to run into a complete stranger twice in less than twenty-four hours. But it’s a weird world we live in.

I briskly walked back to the apartment with the hope that Lilly would be there. I was in luck. When I burst through the door, she was lounged out across the sofa reading some sort of useless fashion magazine.

Wow, what happened to you? Looks like you’ve already been through the ringer. She was equal parts concerned and amused.

I’m beginning to think I’m some sort of imbecile. I plopped my butt into the brightly patterned chair that we’d both dubbed ‘The Crazy Chair’.

I think the majority of the human race could be labeled as imbecilic. What makes you think you’ve earned the title today?

Besides making a huge scene in front of cooperate America and looking like an idiot? Nothing much. My laugh was self-deprecating.

Lilly broke out into a fit of giggles, her face turning a shade of red that could’ve been made into a nice nail polish color. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t laugh.

Hey, be my guest. It was humorous if I do say so myself. But in all seriousness, I think I need to squash this list idea. I’d rather not spend my last year in a maximum security prison.

She sat up and pinned me with a serious stare. "As much as I hate the idea of why you’re doing all of this, I really do get it, London. And if you want the truth, I’m jealous that you get to try and do all of that stuff. In my opinion, if you don’t at least try to complete it, you’re an idiot."

But some things aren’t worth the headache. I shrugged, trying to play off my extreme disappointment.

"Not that I have much worldly experience, but what I have experienced has taught me that some things are worth the headache. You just need to decide if this is. If you think so, then you need to go out and make things happen. Don’t sit around this apartment and wish for things, throw yourself into the wind and see where you land."

Those were wise words coming from her. I don’t think I’d ever heard such quasi-philosophical advice from Lilly before. Most things that came from her mouth are based on some sort of hairstyle I should sport, or that I shouldn’t be wearing black shoes with a brown shirt. Color me impressed.

You’re right.

She looked shocked that I’d even admit that. I am?

"Absolutely. I can’t mope around here and expect to live the next year the way I want. I have to seize the day. Carpe Diem and all that mess."

Then go out there and make it happen! Lilly jumped from her perch and fisted her hands in the air. It was all so ‘Jersey Shore’ but